


When I Wished Upon that Star, I wasn't Expecting it to Come True.

by Amari



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Fluff, I still don't have a grasp of AO3 tags yet, I'm sorry for that, Let's make something as cute as possible, M/M, This should be
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-12-29
Updated: 2014-05-24
Packaged: 2018-01-06 13:13:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,399
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1107269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amari/pseuds/Amari
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Wish Granting Foundation, or WGF, is a foundation that was created to grant the wish of those that wish upon stars. Those that make the wishes are called Wishers, agents are deployed to grant the wish are called Granters. </p><p>Ray Narvaez Jr. has wished upon a shooting star for someone to love and for someone to return that love. Love wishes are rarely granted for various reasons, but Agent Joel Heyman has been assigned to his Wish. It his job to find Ray that person.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“Seven wishes received in sector W534, all local, ages 7-10, sending in Agent Broddingham.”

“Agent Matthis sent to sector 3-234R for two long-term wishes.”

“Shooting star incoming in Sector T-378”

“Already? I though it wasn’t supposed to be for another hour or so!”

“Do we have enough agents?!?”

“Calm down, only a few are predicted to see it—“

“The wishes are flooding in! We might not track them all!”

“Get what we can! First time Wishers are our priority!”

The large control room was filled with loud, shouting voices as they confirmed wishes and sent agents that were on stand-by to go fill them. Shooting-Star panic was never fun for the workers of the Wish Granting Federation also known as WGF. Their job is to make the wishes of those who wish upon stars come true. They do what they can, but they cannot grant all wishes. They are not capable of bringing loved ones back to life, or making fictional characters real, but they can make a lost toy show up once again. They can help bad financial situations slowly get better over time. They can repair families without anyone realizing they are being helped.

Those that make the wishers are known as Wishers.

The agents sent to grant those wishes are called Granters.

Granters are secret agents, lurking in the background of the Wisher’s life doing what they can to grant their wish.  Granters are immediately assigned to a Wisher as soon as the wish is logged into the system. How they grant the wish is completely up to the Granter as long as the Wish is granted.

And that is how the WGF works.

Commander Amarao stood over his workers who were furiously typing away at their keyboards, locating wishes and assigning Granters that would be appropriate to the wish. The Shooting-Star panic still lingered in the room. His big black eyebrows twitched impatiently, waiting for the panic to die down and everything return to normal. He didn’t like it when his workers freaked out when they knew they could handle it. After years of doing this, they should know by now that they are fully capable of getting all the S.S. wishes and getting them taken care of.

Lieutenant Kitsurubami sighed quietly as she clutched the tablet close to her chest and stood next to her Commander. She was wearing her regulation blue uniform, just like all the other workers were, she just had a fancy hat and a few golden pins that announced her status.

“Commander, I think you should stop twitching,” Kitsurbami suggested as she brushed a few strands of bleached-blonde hair from her face.  “You’re gonna scare them far more than the amount of wishes do.”

Amarao let out a large sigh, visibly relaxing but still keeping a stern look at those scrambling beneath him. “I suppose you’re right. Glaring isn’t going to help them ease up any faster.”

Just then, the tablet in Kitsurubami’s  hands bleeped at her. She glanced at the message that had appeared at the screen. Her face fell.

“Sir?” She said, getting his attention.

He turned to her, “What is it Lieutenant?”

She took a second to reread the message once again to make sure she read it correctly.

“We’ve got a Wisher.  Ray Narvaez Jr. Age 24, just wished on the S.S. for… someone to love and for that someone to return that love. As you know, for that kind of wish, permission needs to be granted to send a Granter.”

Wishes regarding love were time-consuming. They take an agent away for many years as they carefully craft the relationship between the Wisher and the partner designated by the Granter. More often than not, Love wishes are not granted because they are hard and only few Granters are capable of granting the wish.

The Commander scrunched his comically large eyebrows together in thought.

After a few moments of silence Amarao spoke, “How much information do we have on the boy, and what is his current Wish status?”

“Next to none, only that he is friends with a Wisher named Gavin Free who’s wish to get his Visa for the U.S. was granted a few years ago. This is his first wish upon a star, Sir.”

“And it was an S.S. too.” The Commander grumbled to himself. He leaned forward, pacing his hands on the railing in front of him. His fingers curled tightly against the metal bar as he thought.

“Alright,” He finally said, “Permission granted.”

Kitsurubami’s fingers flew across the screen sending the confirmation message. A few seconds later and another message popped up.

“Sir, they are asking about which agent to send.”

“Send Agent Heyman.” Commander Amarao firmly stated, looking into the bright screens in front of him.

“But Sir!” Lieutenant Kitsurubami objected, “Agent Heyman just came back from a Love Wish that took five years to fully grant two weeks ago, we can’t send him on another one so early.”

Amarao narrowed his eyebrows in at her, “We can. And we will. He managed to do it in five years, the shortest time anyone has been able to grant a Love wish.  He was able to do something other Granters were not, and since it hasn’t been long, his mind will still be sharp. If we are lucky, he’ll grant it even faster than last time.”

Lieutenant Kitsurubami hesitated before nodding. “Understood. Sending Agent Heyman.” She typed away on her tablet, sending the order. She only hoped that Agent Heyman wouldn't get too mad when he received his order.


	2. Chapter 2

Joel Heyman was relaxing on a California beach, enjoying his well-earned vacation after his last mission was an outstanding success.  He was 42, but if you didn’t look at him up close, he could pass for half that. He was good looking, with a mind that never seemed to age. The only thing that looked bad on Joel was his terrible taste in shirts. For instance, he was wearing a bright orange Hawaiian shirt that was about two sizes too large for him and camo shorts that had a tear in the left leg.

He had a perfect spot, far enough away from the massive crowd, but not too far from his vehicle.  Chilling in his chair, watching the waves, he pulled out a beer from the blue cooler next to him and took a swig. Whenever a cute girl or guy walked past, he’d tilt his sunglasses down and give them wink. None of them responded, but hell, he really didn’t care. He didn’t give a shit about anything but relaxing.

He was only disturbed when he felt a larger man come up from behind him. He sat up quickly and spun around to face the stranger.

“Agent Heyman! Fancy seeing you here!” The large man smiled at him. He had an auburn beard that could rival Santa, and eyebrows that rivaled the Commander. He was shirtless, arms full of standard beach equipment, and looked ready to keel over. “Mind if I park myself here?”

“Cut the crap, ‘Agent Adam Ellis’ and sit your ass down already.” Joel barked, and Adam immediately dropped his stuff, spreading out next to Joel. “Jesus, you should have told me that you had off too.”

Adam readied his chair, and grabbed a beer from Joel’s cooler earning a joking scolding from the other man. When Adam told him to shut it, Joel responded with a pout. Adam had been working for WGF as long as Joel had. They started out as trainees together, and bonded quickly.

“Yeah, I just finished up my Mission three days ago. It was two Wishers, simple ones really” Adam grunted as he stretched out on his chair, “but I had to travel halfway across the country to do it. One girl whished for her parents to take her to Build-A-Bear, and her brother just wanted to spend the day at the arcade.”

Joel smirked before taking another drink, “Cute. So I take it the family came across a bunch of coupons for Build-A-Bear and the boy was the nth something customer so all his games were free?”

Adam nodded his drink in Joel’s direction, “Basically.”

A group of women of various sizes walked past the two men. Joel couldn’t help himself; he tilted his sunglasses and winked.  One of the girls smiled, but that was all he received.

“You really expect them to go after your old bones?” Adam teased as he watched the women walked away.

“Nah.” Joel answered truthfully, “I guess after five years of making sure two people fall in love and making sure they were meant for each other, I would kind of like something like that for myself.”

“Dawwwwwww. If it makes you feel better Joel, I love you.”

“Love you too, but I wouldn’t want to wake up with my face tucked into your chest fur, you goddamn grizzly bear.”

Both men laughed their lungs out, but as their laughter died the sound of Joel’s phone going off replaced the noise in the air. His ringtone was of him singing horribly to a theme song of a show they watched together one year. Adam looked at Joel and started chuckling, making fun of him as he Joel dug through his bag to find the annoying piece of plastic and electronic stuff.

He finally located it and looked at the screen with disgust. He hit the answer button and lifted the phone to his ear. “Agent Joel Heyman.”

As soon as Adam heard Joel’s answer, he knew who it was.

“Hello Agent Heyman, we have your next mission ready for you.” A cool voice said on the other end of the line. It was the Mission Dispatcher, a voice Joel hadn’t heard in a long, long time.

Joel face contorted with a mix of confusion and irritation, “What do you mean? I thought I had at least an entire month off before I had to Grant again.”

The voice on the other end laughed a hollow laugh, “Funny thing about that, it’s going to be another long-term Wish, so you might as well enjoy it too.”

“What?” Joel nearly shouted. He stood from the chair and started walking around his spot, “No, no, you are NOT giving me another Love Wish.”

“His name is Ray Narvez Jr.” The Dispatcher said, ignoring Joel’s obvious frustration, “He lives in Austin, Texas. The rest of the details about him and the Wish will be sent to you as soon as this phone call ends. You’ll be on Federation time starting in two days. Soak up that California sun while you can, you might not be seeing it for a long time.”

“Goddammit.” Joel cursed, knowing he had no say in the matter.

The voice laughed again, “We believe in you, Agent Heyman, with your skill, it might not even take you five years.” The line went dead right after that.

Joel wanted nothing more than to chuck his phone and break it against some rocks, but he settled for a kick in the sand. Angry hands grabbed at his hair, pulling on the black locks that were already sticking up in every direction. He let out furious muffled noises as he paced in a frustrated circle.

Adam stood up and grabbed Joel by the shoulders, “Jesus, Joel, calm down. You know they are only giving you the Wish because they know you can handle it, right?”

Adam managed to sit Joel back down on his chair, and they went over this Ray kid’s specs. Ray is 24, 5’9” of Puerto Rican descent, was born in New York, and moved to Texas to work at a Media Production Company called Roosterteeth. A name they were familiar with only because of the massive project that a certain British kid’s Wish to work there. His wish took multiple Granters working with various media groups among other things to get him to the U.S. Ray started there after Gavin’s Wish had been granted so there wasn’t much information on him other than that he was Gavin’s friend.

“Who was your last Wisher?” Adam asked after they had gone through all the information.

“It was a girl, same age, a few years out of college with a pretty decent job. She was just missing relationship experience and often caved on her own fear of screwing up the relationship. She often cut them off prematurely to avoid hurting herself or other people. Basically, it was finding someone that would have that patience to deal with that, and slowly planting the idea in her head that she wasn’t going to fuck up everything.” Joel explained, “But this Ray guy, just from looking at his face, doesn’t seem like that’s his issue.”

“You can tell that just from looking at him?” Adam asked.

“Yeah. It’s written all over his face.” Joel said, showing Adam the pictures in the file WGF had quickly composed. He pointed out very specific physical features that could mean this or that. Needless to say, Adam was impressed with Joel’s ability to pick out physiological features with ease and from a handful of pictures.

“Not to mention how he phrased his Wish,” Joel continued reading off the Wish word for word, “’Yeah, so I’ve never done this before, but why not? I wish for someone to care about. I wish for someone I can actually fucking love, and not have to worry about that person loving me back.’ What I can tell from the wish is that he has problems getting himself to actually care about someone other than himself, but he’s legitimately trying. It’s just not working.”

Adam nodded in understanding, and before he could say something Joel was already packing his stuff up. He folded up his chair, handed his other two remaining beers to Adam, and picked up his stuff.

“You’re leaving already?”

“They said I have to be there in two days. I need to find an apartment probably right now if I don’t want to sleep on the street for the first week. The WGF can only pull so many strings, you know?”  Joel called back as he started walking away. “I’ll keep you updated, okay Adam?”

Adam laughed, “Yeah. Good luck Joel.” 


	3. Chapter 3

Ray sighed softly and slid his green Razor headphones off. Putting it around his neck, he leaned back in his chair and looked around at his fellow co-workers in the cramped office. Four other men were glued to their computer screens, either editing a video or checking a mountain of emails. He had just finished recording an achievement guide for a new game and was taking a quick stretch. His brown eyes glanced at the clock on the screen. It was almost time to go, actually.

His co-workers noticed the same thing, and they started mimicking his actions. They all groaned, bones popping as they leaned back in their chairs. After a nice stretch, Michael, who sat next to him, turned to the door. As if summoned by a silent spell, a red-haired girl appeared in the doorway. Her name was Lindsay, and she was engaged to Michael. With light steps, she made her way into the office. Stopping in front of Michael, she bent over and kissed him gently. Michael followed her lips straight out of his chair, and with a whispered “Let’s go,” the two of them left. They were joined by the hands, and with Michael’s remaining free hand he managed to wave a goodbye to Geoff before getting whisked away.

And then an avalanche of love crashed into the room. Geoff picked up his phone and called his wife, Griffon. Jack picked up his phone and did the same. Her name was Caiti. Geoff asked about his daughter Millie; Jack asked about his dog. Gavin turned to Ray and talked about his girlfriend, Meg. They all had someone waiting for them somewhere. It was suffocating, like he was being buried under twenty feet of snow. Their warmth sent chills down his spine as he thought about his empty apartment that was waiting for him.

Ray grabbed his bag, shuffled out the door, and mumbled a goodbye as he left. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he made a mental note to hug his PS4 when he got home. His place wasn’t far from work, so walking was never a problem. It’s not like he could drive anyway. Well, maybe he could, but he never had a need for a driver’s license or a vehicle.

He hopped a fence, hoping that he wouldn’t catch himself on it. The well-faded scar stung at the thought of the last time he cut it open doing it. Luckily for him, he cleared the fence with no problem and he continued his path home. When the apartment complex came into view he immediately noticed a truck parked in front of one first floor apartments. It was a mover’s truck, the kind you can rent and drive yourself.

Funny, he didn’t remember hearing about any vacancies in the complex, nor did he hear of a new tenant. Not that he usually paid any attention to that sort of thing, but still. Looking around the truck, he noticed a tall figure who was struggling with something black and massive in the doorway. For a brief moment, Ray wondered if he should go introduce himself like a good neighbor, but his anti-social side told him to ignore the guy and go straight to his apartment upstairs. His split second of indecision cost him, because the man in the doorway yelled to him and waved him over.

“Hey! Can you help an old guy out for a second?” The man called out to Ray.

With a sigh Ray hoped the guy missed, he wandered over. Upon closer inspection, the black thing was large couch that looked comfy as hell.  And the guy that called him over didn’t look half bad either. An average build bordering the line of fit, taller than Ray, black hair that stuck up wherever it wanted, warm brown eyes, and a dented smile. Not bad at all.

“Sure. Where’s the old guy?” Ray asked while smirking.

The man pointed to himself, “Right here. My name’s Joel and I’m old as hell. I need some help with this couch. Can you grab the other end for me?”

Ray shrugged before bending over and picking up the half that was still outside. With Joel’s directions they managed to get the large piece of furniture through the door and maneuvered into the living room area of the apartment. The apartment’s insides looked just like Ray’s did, but reversed and full of boxes and containers of stuff that hadn’t been unpacked yet.

The two of them got stuck a few times trying to get around the counter. After they carefully set down the couch, Ray looked up to see Joel twisting the kinks out of his back.

Joel wiped off invisible sweat from his forehead, “Phew. Thanks for the help. I really appreciate it.”

“No problem.”

“You live around here?” Joel asked.

Ray pointed to the ceiling, “Yeah, I live right upstairs.  ‘Name’s Ray.”

Joel waked over and extended a hand and Ray shook it, “Nice to meet you Ray. As you can tell, I’m your new neighbor. I don’t think I’ll need help with anything else, so you can go if you’d like.” Joel paused for a second. “Or you can stay and chat with me while I unload stuff if you aren’t too busy.”

“Nah. I should probably go.” Ray replied, but his words never matched his actions. Instead he ended up gluing himself to the entry way. His feet became cement blocks and didn’t move out the door. When Joel grabbed a few more boxes and noticed Ray still in his apartment, he chuckled.

“I thought you were leaving?” Joel asked as he added another box to the growing stack.

Ray bobbed his head, “You know what? I thought so too, but turns out I changed my mind.”

Joel flashed a toothy smile, “Cool.”

Maybe it was the suddenness of Joel’s moving in, or maybe it was how nice his new neighbor was, but he found himself curious about the older man’s life. At first he didn’t say anything, choosing to grab certain boxes Joel told him to, but eventually curiosity got the best of him.

It was like a game of rapid-fire questions.

“Why did you move to Austin?”  Ray asked after setting down a box.

“Work sent me here.”

“Oh yeah?” Ray quirked an eyebrow, “What’s your job?”

Joel looked straight into Ray’s eyes, “I’m a secret agent.” His tone was absolutely serious.

Ray blinked a few times, taken aback by Joel’s intentness, and then let out a breathy laugh, “Ha ha. Funny. What do you really do?”

Joel shook his head and shrugged a shoulder, “Let’s just call it government work okay? That’s the easiest way to explain it.”

Ray found that answer to be acceptable and went on to his next one, “You said ‘old man’ earlier, how old are you?”

“Fourty-two, what about you, kid?”

“Twenty-four.”

“What are you doing hanging out with an old man that’s almost twice your age?”

“Hm.” Ray pretended to ponder, putting a finger on his chin and tilting his head, “I remember said old man inviting me to stay and help.”

Joel scrunched his face and looked to the ceiling, “Hunh. Strange. I don’t quite remember that. I must be forgetting shit in my old age.”

Ray laughed heartily.  Talking to Joel was strangely easy, like they had been friends for a long time and were just reuniting again. Despite the evident age gap between them, it was no different than Ray being friends with any of the older men at the Roosterteeth office. Actually, Joel would probably fit right in there with all the other crazies in the building. Especially when Joel’d go in a two minute rant about something that would have him repeating himself several times before moving on to the next word. Time blew by as they worked on unloading the truck, box by box the truck emptied and the apartment filled.

Joel carried in one last thing, his TV. He set it down carefully on the stand that had been found earlier. He clapped his hands together signaling a job well done. Clamping a hand on Ray’s shoulder he thanked him and offered him to take him to dinner or something for all the help, but this time Ray declined and meant it. Maybe some other time, but for now he’d just go upstairs and make himself a quick meal.

As Ray was heading out the door he spun around, getting Joel’s attention. “Hey Joel?”

Joel looked up from his phone he had started tinkering with, “Yeah?”

“How come your friends didn’t help you?”

“I thought you would have figured it out by now, I don’t exactly have any friends in Austin yet. Unless you want to put yourself on that list.”

Ray beamed, “Where’s the form? Sign me up.”

Joel shook his head, “Get out of here you dork, I’ll catch ya later, okay?”

Ray scrambled up the stairs and jumped into his own apartment. He flopped over on his own tan couch and laid there for a bit. Racked with pain, his body refused to move, but his mind was still active. His past few hours re-wound in his brain and projected onto the ceiling. From feeling strangled in his office, to the fun feeling of making a new friend.

Speaking of friends, he took out his phone from his pocket to see several text messages from his friend Tina Dayton. He ignored giving her a proper response, instead typing in a new message altogether.

_“How long do you think it takes for a wish on a shooting star to be granted?”_

~~~~~~~~

Wish Progress Log #1

Granter: Agent Joel Heyman  
Wish: L-2414159  
Wisher: Ray Narvez Jr.

-Met with Wisher in first day in Austin. Currently residing below Wisher for easy observation. First impression of Wisher: A lot nicer than expected. Wisher seems to be relatively relaxed and strangely unguarded among strangers. Could say that it’s Texas hospitality, but Wisher originates from New York and has only recently moved to Austin himself. Wisher is good looking, so finding a potential partner shouldn’t be too hard initially. Unsure of Wishers sexual orientation, will assume is straight until proven otherwise.

-Is snarky, but in a fun, teasing kind of way. A good trait to have.

-In person, Wisher is nothing close to the Wisher that is portrayed in online videos. This is to be expected since he is essentially playing a character while at work.

-At end of time with Wisher, a ‘friendship’ was established. This will make it easier to learn behavior patterns and adjust potentials accordingly.

-Plan on scoping out this Roosterteeth place tonight.

End Log


	4. Chapter 4

Joel pulled away from his laptop when he finished his log. The blue light the only source of light in the apartment that had long gotten dark. Joel sighed. He had a long night ahead of him. The fifth mug of coffee that slipped down his throat served as a reminder of that.

He was going to scope out the Rooster Teeth building.

It was a step most of his co-worker would have said was unnecessary, going farther out of his way than he should. Then again, those same co-workers would look horrified if he told them that he had met his Wisher face to face. Stuff like that was unheard of considering most, if not all of their work was done from the background, from the shadows so they don’t disrupt the life of the Wisher. Scoping out the place would give Joel a better idea of the objects Ray sees on a day to day basis. Not so much the people, but the pictures, the computer screens, the floor patterns, whatever. Sure, Joel had already seen the tour videos on youtube that detailed the inside of the building, but they were two years old. From his understanding, the place had changed drastically in less than two years.

His watch beeped at the numbers changed to eleven o’clock. Standing from his chair, he grabbed his black overstuffed backpack and keys, and headed out the door.  The warm night Austin air greeted him as he exited. He’d like to think that it wished him good luck as he entered his truck and headed down the few blocks to the Office. He slowed down when he drove in front of the black-gated building. Cold metal denying anyone who might want to come in late at night. He wondered briefly if he could fit through the large gaps or if he’d need something in his bag to scale it.

Joel figured he’d be able to jump it, and continued past the building. A few blocks farther from the building there was a nice little restaurant where he parked. It was one of those family-owned restaurants that were open until god knows when just because they could. It wasn’t a suspicious place to park, so he’d be fine for a while. From there, he walked back to the Rooster Teeth building, stopping in front of a tree right next to a gate. His backpack slid off his shoulders and he gently put it on the ground. Fumbling around for a second, he pulled out what he needed. A tiny little laptop. The little thing was already on when he opened it. Leaning back against the tree, balancing the computer in his hand, he managed to do what he needed.

It was a simple program, well; it looked simple on the surface to guarantee that all Agents could use it. A few clicks of the mouse and Joel knew that he had hacked into the cameras and shut them off. Any security system they might have had, temporarily disabled. Even the gate next to him gave a satisfying click of being unlocked. Joel really had no idea how the damn thing worked, but he was always impressed when it did. Closing the laptop, he all but strolled through the gate, crossing the inside parking lot without a care in the night, and simply opened the front door.

Of course, it was dark inside, but it was no match for his high-powered flashlight he had in his pocket. The light revealed that he was in a small entrance. Which was to be expected. There was a desk to his immediate right, two doors, a dark hallway, and then to his left another door. The first door to his right opened to a room that had a long table that sat in the middle, chairs lined up and down the sides. Looked like your typical conference room with a really neat lightboard that was hung on the wall. Joel backed out quickly and went to the next door.

Without a doubt, it was the Achievement Hunter Office. The room Ray spent most of his time in. Computers, monitors, consoles, scattered everywhere. How six men can sit in this cramped room day after day was beyond Joel’s understanding, but hey, it was his Wisher’s thing. He made a note to come back after he looked at the rest of the building.

From there he checked the door across the entrance, just another work room/storage room with computers and random crap. Down the hallway was a really nice looking kitchen area full of food and a supposedly $2000 table. Aliens were dissected on it or something like that. Upstairs, Joel found even more computers, and four offices. Two of them had sound booths in them.

Even though there weren’t any people in the building, there was still a lot of character left in the building. Traces of life flourished in every dick-covered sticky note that littered the premises. Each desk had a characteristic that told a story about who sat there. He was amazed at how different this company was compared to the simple cubicle-offices he had scoped out over the course of his life.

He made his way back down the stairs, stepping right in front of the large table when he heard a door behind him open. He dove underneath the table and flattened his back against it. Fingers clutched tightly to the flashlight he had quickly turned off and he held his breath. Years of training allowed Joel to remain calm in situations like this.

Footsteps echoed softly against the kitchen walls. Another pair of footsteps came up from behind and joined the beat.

“Hello?” Anyone there?” A young male’s voice called out into the darkness of the kitchen. A part of Joel wanted to answer just to see how he’d react. A moment to pretend he was a ghost and scar some poor schlub’s mind. A chuckle nearly erupted from his throat, but he managed to swallow it back down.

“Yeah, okay Miles, because a rat is going to answer you.” The other voice answered sarcastically.

Joel didn’t dare take a peek as he heard the footsteps come closer to the table. He silently shuffled around the corner of the table. Kind of like when you hide behind a tree during a game of hide and seek and keep walking around it so the seeker can’t find you.

“I swore I heard footsteps, Kerry!” the man identified as Miles declared. “Like, heavy footsteps, not tiny little pitter-patters.”

“Maybe it’s a really big rat?” Kerry suggested.

“You mean like you?”

“Ha-ha. Very funny.”

The two chatted a little more before Miles was reassured that no one else was in the building. The two of them retreated back into the other part of the building.

Joel let out a sigh of relief before standing. His trusty flashlight led his way through the building once again. He glanced at the door knowing that he wouldn’t be able to scope through that part of the building tonight. It wasn’t a major loss though; he could work without exact knowledge of the insides.

From what he understood, that part of the building was the largest. A giant green screen covered most of a wall, and the rest of the space was littered with computers and cameras. It was the main work space for their animation of a project called Red Vs Blue and a newer one called RWBY. Ray wasn’t in there often, but when he was, he was causing trouble along with Michael and Gavin. That boy had way too much fun at work.

But then again, Ray wasn’t the equivalent to a spy, either.

Joel made the short trek back to the Achievement office. The rose taped to the door made him chuckle. The door once again opened without a sound as he made his way in. He crossed the carpet to Ray’s desk. His Wisher was sort of a neat freak, judging how everything had its place on his desk. Pictures of fanart placed systematically on the wall, figurines carefully sat near his computer, and a blue snorlax plushie oversaw everything from his computer tower. Joel wondered briefly if Ray’s apartment was as nice as his desk. The chair slid out from underneath the desk, and Joel carefully sat in it. His body relaxed into the mesh as he leaned back into it. He closed his eyes, and his mind took off with a running start.

The sun filtered through the shades, illuminating the room. At first he was the only one in the room, but then Geoff came in, commenting on how early he was. He only offered a shrug in response. Michael came in next, sitting next to him, Gavin following soon after. Then Jack sat next to Geoff, and then various people peeked in to say good morning. It became a blur of people and words, coming in and out, laughter boiling over the games they played.

This is what it was like to be Ray Narvaez Jr.

Joel opened his eyes, returning him to the darkness of the room. His mission for the night was over. He carefully pushed the chair back in, and left without a trace. Now it was time for him to at least get a few hours of sleep before he was back to work. 


	5. Chapter 5

The unholy noise that was Ray’s alarm clock brought him out of a deep sleep. A noise that reminded him of the routine mornings he had grown accustomed to.  Its screeching high-pitched rhythm was only silenced by physical violence.  He literally just cracked his eyes open, and he was already done with the day. From there he managed to flop out of his bed, preform his morning routine, and was ready for the day in about an hour. He picked up his bag, and bounced out the door, taking the stairs two at before he was running out into the parking lot.

“You in a rush or something?” A voice called out to Ray, making him skid to a halt.

Pivoting on the spot, he saw the man that had called out to him. It was that Joel Heyman fellow that he helped out yesterday. He didn’t look anything like the strong gentleman he met yesterday though. No, not at all with the strange purple leopard print bathrobe with neon pink feather trim he was wearing. Ray didn’t know if he was going for a “dad waiting for the morning paper on the porch step” kind of look with the steaming mug of coffee in his hand and apparent lack of pants, but he pretty much failed that from the get-go.

It was the best thing he could have seen so early in the morning.

Ray had to swallow giggles to even respond, “No. But you’ve got me wondering what animals you killed to make that atrocity.”

Joel gave Ray a smug look, gesturing his mug in Ray’s direction, “What can I say, I’ve had to fight a few purple leopards in my time.”

“You know, Pokémon aren’t actually real, right?” Ray joked, but soon he found himself getting impatient. His legs itched for him to get moving as he bounced from one leg to the next. The backpack on his back shifted with his weight.

“The world is a funny place, Ray.” Joel took a long sip of his coffee. “Where you headed so early in the morning?”

“Believe it or not, I actually work!”

“Don’t drive?”

“I have legs.”

“Work close by?”

“Just a few blocks down, actually.”

“Ooohh, so legs can be a method of transportation.”

“You’re catching on, old man.”

Joel chuckled before waving Ray off, “Okay, get out of here, shoo.”

Ray nodded before bouncing off to work. His steps felt lighter than before, filled with a newfound energy. A smile plastered on his face as he skipped along the sidewalk. He practically sprouted wings and flew, and found himself at the Roosterteeth office in no time. He floated to his chair, passing by the “Juggey” that had yet to separate for the morning.

His sudden high he found himself in didn’t go unnoticed by his coworkers. How could they ignore it when he was practically beaming? Of course they couldn’t let their buddy be happy without reason, or relentlessly teasing him. Ray took teasing like a champ, throwing it back in their faces, and half the time he was laughing at his own jokes. He rode the high all morning until lunch time, where he went off with Michael, Lindsay, and Gavin to go get some grub at a local diner.

The diner was, well, oddly stereotypical of small-business diner.  Bubbly waitresses in faded blue tops and white aprons bounced around with smiles for each customer, some of whom they were already well-acquainted with. The floors had a white and black checkerboard pattern, the booths were covered in pale green leather, and the tables had marble surfaces. They seated themselves, Lindsay and Michael taking the window seats, and Gavin and Ray on the inside seats. The waitress was at their table in a matter of moments.

“Hi there!” She greeted, placing a glass of water for each of them and their own napkin-wrapped silverware down on the table. “My name is Miranda, and I’ll be your waitress today, can I get you started with anything today? Coffee perhaps?”

Miranda smiled directly at Ray and beamed happiness into his very soul. Perfect pink lips on a pretty face gave him a gift. Lifted from his feet, floating on air, Ray’s stomach fluttered with butterflies. He reflected her pearly white smile. He was too busy looking at her to answer until Michael elbowed him in the ribs.

“Oh uh, yeah, I’m fine y-yeah.” Ray stuttered, painting his own face with a deep blush.

She nodded, “Alright, I’ll be back in just a few moments to get your orders.”

Michael passed out the menus that were stashed behind the extra-napkin dispenser, and they spent the time searching over what they were going to get for food.

“So, what was that, Ray?” Gavin asked, peeking over the top of his menu.

Ray raised an eyebrow, “What are you talking about?”

“Dude, you nearly jizzed yourself looking at her, and she’s not that hot man.” Michael teased, not taking his eyes off the menu.

Ray smiled and shook his head, “Hey, she’s decent, I’d go out with her if I got the chance. Just to test the waters or whatever.”

Lindsay snickered, “Maybe she’ll dump your food all over you and then she’ll owe you.”

“Okay dumbass,” Michael growled teasingly, “this isn’t like some dumb TV show. She’s not going to just trip and fall conveniently on air and drop Ray’s food in his lap.”

“You never know!” Lindsay argued.

“Yeah, Michael, you don’t know!” Gavin agreed.

The three continued bickering, forgetting the point of the conversation and focusing on what ridiculous things wouldn’t happen in real life that would happen in the movies. Ray was relieved that the focus was taken off him. He didn’t actually want to think about relationships. Not now, anyways.

Just before the argument got heated, Miranda returned to the table. She asked what they wanted, and her pen went flying away on the scratchpad. Gavin wanted waffles, Lindsay wanted a cheeseburger, Michael getting the same, and Ray decided on spaghetti. She flashed another smile at Ray before she spun around to leave with the order.

“She’s into you, Ray.” Lindsay said suggestively.

Ray shook his head, “Yeah, no. Really no. She’s just trying to make damn sure she gets a tip. Don’t get me wrong, it’s working, but she’s not interested.”

Michael barked with laughter, “Okay Ray, you tell yourself that.”

Again the conversation drifted away from Ray and he was able to breathe. Sure, the idea of dating Miranda, dating _anyone_ sounded great but might not work out in practice. Dating doesn’t work when you are desperate, because you cling to things that aren’t there. You see traits in a person that don’t exist because all you see are butterflies and rainbows, but when the new relationship smell wears off, you are left with a dreamer’s junk and a person you can’t find real feelings for.

Would it really be worth it to ask a stranger out? Would it really be worth it to take a chance though?

Miranda returned to the table, a big tray of food in hand, and her smile broke through the fog of Ray’s thoughts. “Here’s your food, guys.” She beamed as she placed down three plates. Two burgers and a waffle.

“Sorry, I have to go back and get yours,” She said, brushing her fingertips against Ray’s shoulder in apology. “I’ll be right back.”

And she was returning with the plate in a matter of seconds, happily walking her way back to the table. But then everything turned to slow-motion. Her foot slipped, and she started falling forward. Inch by inch the plate crawled through the air towards Ray. Noodles lifted off the plate, taking the perfectly drizzled sauce with it.  If orchestral music was blasting in the background it would almost seem like a Pasta commercial. But it wasn’t, it wasn’t a commercial, it wasn’t TV but the spaghetti that was flying toward Ray was most certainly real. Ray tried shoving himself back into Michael to scoot away from the food missile, but got nowhere.

Time sped back into normal speed once the plate splattered in his lap, coating Ray in sauce.  Lucky for him he was wearing one of his many red t-shirts. Lindsay immediately burst into laughter.

Miranda picked herself off the floor and immediately began apologizing in a fury of words. “Oh god, I’m so, so, sorry. Oh god, I just, hold on, I am going to get a towel. I’m sorry!” She dashed behind the doors to the kitchen once again.

Lindsay was in hysterics while Michael and Gavin stared helplessly at the pile in Ray’s lap. Ray could feel the sauce soaking into his clothes, wet and heavy. He flipped the plate onto the table and began grabbing handfuls of the asshole spaghetti to throw it on the plate.

“What was that about it not happening in real life, Michael?” Lindsay nearly screamed, wiping tears from her eyes.

Miranda returned with the towel, giving it to Ray, “Again, I am so, so sorry, your meal will be free, and I just—is there anything I can do to make it up to you?”

Ray opened his mouth to speak, “Ah, really don’t worry—“

“Actually,” Michael interrupted, “How about you go on a date with this guy? His name’s Ray, by the way.”

Ray shoved him, “Michael! Shut up!”

“Okay.” Miranda said

Ray nearly spun himself out of the booth, “What?”

Miranda nodded, “Yeah, sure, I’ll go on a date with you.”

\--

Wish Progress Log #2

Granter: Agent Joel Heyman  
Wish: L-2414159  
Wisher: Ray Narvaez Jr.

\--First test has begun to see ability to connect to women

\-- Tripping Subject 2 was easy enough, Wisher accepted the date just like Subject 2.

\-- The pair will be going on a date next week.

\--Not expecting the relationship to last, but the point is to see how the Wisher works in relationships. Love doesn’t develop so quickly, and Wisher is aware of this.

End Log

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not exactly expecting this to be anywhere near MBFiMS length, I just feel that for something like this that has a massive world buildup, I need chapters to pull it off well. 
> 
> Extra cookies to those that know who the Commander and the Lieutenant are!


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